Prop. 64: Legalizes adult recreational use of marijuana

The proponents of Proposition 64, the ballot initiative to legalize recreational marijuana in California, have a rallying cry: “Let’s get it right.” Unfortunately, Prop. 64 gets it wrong, except for those who wish to make money off the next “California Gold Rush.”

Voters aren’t being asked to vote on the concept of legalization; they are being asked to vote for an initiative drafted by lobbyists and consultants without collaboration with public health and public safety experts. Prop. 64 is more than 60 pages long and it tweaks, changes or adds 100 laws to the books. Unfortunately, the focus is more on the marijuana industry’s profits than on the potentially devastating social impacts.

The proponents even added a provision that allows for television advertising of marijuana products. It is another in a series of calculated decisions to allow marijuana businesses to market their products to their future customers — our kids.

Polls reveal that as more Californians understand this measure, more are opposed. It tells you all you need to know when you learn that one of the largest funders of the measure is Weedmaps, whose founder told the Wall Street Journal he wanted to be the “Philip Morris of pot.”

As a Bay Area police chief, I am aware of the damage done by the criminalization of marijuana. I also understand the issues around medical marijuana. I value and support the regulated use of medical marijuana and the benefits it brings to patients. Just last year, the California Police Chiefs Association worked with legislators, stakeholders and the governor to craft the Medical Cannabis Regulation and Safety Act. Unfortunately, the authors of Prop. 64 are setting the stage for chaos at both the state and local level.

We can learn from Colorado. Since legalization, Colorado has experienced a spike in cartel-driven crime. Prop. 64 allows for personal home grows of six plants. And as in Colorado, we would not know if a personal home grow has six plants or 60 plants, thus providing for a perfect source for the black market. Impaired driving rates in Colorado have also increased, and the number of kids being poisoned by marijuana edibles continues to skyrocket.

The California Police Chiefs Association is aligned with the California Growers Association, which represents cannabis cultivators, when the growers association executive director says, “We would rather that (the state) takes its time and does it right.”

As we grapple with drug addiction, persons with mental health issues and homelessness throughout the Bay Area, why would we add something that will further affect our public health and safety resources? Prop. 64 is bad for our children, bad for our communities and bad for California.

“Any serious discussion of marijuana legalization must begin with the acknowledgment of reality: Prohibition is not working. The drug is popular and readily available for recreational use, either through medical marijuana dispensaries, where 18-year-olds can purchase cannabis with a doctor’s recommendation, often after a nudge-and-a-wink; or a black market that continues to thrive. ...

Prop. 64 was drafted to reflect the recommendations of a blue-ribbon commission put together by Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom in October 2013. That 24-member panel included specialists in law enforcement, tax law, medicine and federal drug policy. The panel included members with deep apprehensions about expanding marijuana use, especially among minors. ...

Prop. 64 would bring discipline and oversight to an industry operating in the shadows, to the detriment of public health, the environment and public safety. Vote yes on 64.”